Learning
by Mystic Angel 007
Summary: Amy asks Murdock to help her pass her licence test, sounds straight forward except he has no wheels. B.A refuses to lend the van, Hannibal is on site filming and Face just so happens to be asleep and his keys on the counter. Un Beta'd. Please R & R.


**Title:** Learning (A.K.A How Amy damaged Face's baby)  
><strong>Fandom:<strong> A-Team (TV!Verse)  
><strong>Rating:<strong> K+  
><strong>Characters: <strong>Amy, Murdock, Face  
><strong>About: <strong>Amy asks Murdock to help her pass her licence test, sounds straight forward except he has no wheels. B.A refuses to lend the van, Hannibal is on site filming and Face just so happens to be asleep and his keys on the counter. Amy and Face have a moment, not a romantic or angsty one.

**-A-TEAM-A-TEAM-**

Amy Allen was on a deadline, she only had a few days until her learners permit expired and she had neglected to get any practise done, actually she had procrastinated too much and now it was make or break time.

Standing in the kitchen of the guys current house she was pleading with her friends to take her driving.

"Please B.A? I just need to do some actual practice? Please?"

"Sorry Amy, no can do" _I barely let the fool drive my girl. Him I can get mad at you I can't. _

"Murdock?" she batted her eyes playfully.

"You know I would Chiquita but I don't have wheels"

"Oh, well what about Face?"

"He had a few last night and he's not the most patient of people anyway" Murdock said before taking another sip of his hot chocolate.

Amy held the vette keys in her right hand; "If you had wheels you'd teach me, right?" she eyed Murdock.

B.A. not liking where this was heading went out to tinker on the van, he did not want any part in whatever those two were scamming.

_Face love that car, they do anything to it he gonna hit the roof._

"I guess but we can't just take Face's car. We should ask him first" he drank the last of the beverage

"It'll be fine, we'll just leave a note"

"I still don't think he'll appreciate us commandeering his baby"

"Come on, where is your sense of adventure?"

"Fine, but don't say I didn't try to talk you out of this" _Because I get the feeling it will only end in tears and I hope they don't belong to me._

Amy handed Murdock the vette keys before she scribbled Face a quick note.

_Sorry not to ask but you were asleep, Murdock is taking me driving and have borrowed the vette. Thanks X0 Amy._

**-A-TEAM-A-TEAM-**

Unsure of how much on road experience Amy had Murdock decided to start at a cemetery which on Sunday afternoon only had one other car. He pulled up, turned off the ignition and turned to Amy.

"I won't bark instructions to you but if I suggest you do something please don't argue okay?"

"I promise, here is my log book"

"Driving is a privilege not a rite" Murdock said matter-of-factly as he looked at all the unchecked boxes.

_Jezz, has she had any experience? If we get one scratch on this car I'm gonna be a dead man. What did I get talked into?_

Amy and Murdock switched positions and adjusted the seats, Amy also adjusted the mirror to suite her stature. As Amy turned on the motor Murdock swiftly turned off the radio.

"Hey, I like that song" She pouted.

"Amy as a new road user you need to focus on things around you with minimum distractions. Once you pass the test and are competent you add can a minor distraction with ease but should you ever drive and talk on the phone at the same time I will cut your license with a pair of scissors"

"I'll make sure to remember that" she gulped.

He wouldn't really do that would he? The stern look in his eyes reminded her of Hannibal's headstrong determination when it came to a plan. Re-evaluation, he would do just that if she gave him the chance.

"Use you indicator and pull out, pretend there is a white line down the centre of the road and that there is oncoming traffic"

Amy listened to Murdock as he patiently let her drive around the almost empty cemetery for half an hour without any near miss incidents. Everything was going rather well, she could three point turn, U-turn and curb-side park effortlessly.

In the block ahead Murdock saw a utility that would be prefect to practise reverse parking with. Getting Amy to pull over two car lengths behind he asked the owner if they would mind them using it as a practise and was pleased when the driver mentioned he was currently teaching his son to drive and often came out here, thus he had no issues with the request.

Coming mirror to mirror with the vehicle under Murdock's instruction Amy executed the manoeuvre perfectly. Murdock was impressed.

"I think you have enough skill to try the open road, come out and take a left"

Murdock knew the road and it wasn't a main road. Given the time of day it should be fairly quiet, a good thing because you shouldn't take new drivers on busy roads when they still need to build confidence to match their increasing skill levels. They usually still lack the ability to handle complex road changes such as roundabouts and eight way intersections.

_That's just common sense_ he thought _I know experienced drivers that need refresher courses in those areas. Growing up on the farm I learned to drive really young and it just came naturally, still I rather the air than the ground anyway._

Coming to a stop sign Amy fully stooped, checked then kept going.

"Good kid, always come to a full stop like that. You can get booked and though it isn't that common it's a good habit to get into"

"Thanks" she felt her confidence grow.

At a give way sign she slowed down but didn't completely stop, checked both ways were clear before proceeding down the road.

"Though the book says you don't have to stop I have found it's better to just do it anyway"

"Oh, Okay I will"

Rounding a corner, a little faster than Murdock would have like but still under the speed limit they're careful driving lesson hit a snag. A really big lime green snag with lots of wheels. Coming at from the opposite direction was the oversized load of a crane.

Instead of listening to Murdock's fairly calm voice and pulling over gently to let it pass Amy panicked and swerved too much to the right.

"Break Amy" Murdock was getting a little worried as the gutter came closer.

A second later "Break!" Panic evident.

_Jesus Amy, hit the break. Please hit the break._

"Brea-" crash the front hit the gutter. Thankfully he always wore a seatbelt.

Murdock wasn't sure but he may well have sworn before the last 'break'.

"Sorry, I just, I'm sorry" Amy's eyes were wide and her knuckles had turned white at the intensity at which they gripped the wheel.

Her heart was beating faster than normal, she was scared, what if she'd hit the crane? Aside from totalling Face's car she might have injured Murdock or herself or worse….She took her hands off the wheel and fidgeted with them, what had she just done?

Murdock reached over and turned off the ignition. Watching the range of emotions play over her face, guilt, remorse, sorrow, anger, confusion. Things he knew too well, it was just an accident and no-one or thing (aside from the car) had been hurt. She/they had been lucky, this could have been a lot worse.

"I know, no one's hurt"

_Face is gonna kill me for letting you learn to drive in his car and subsequently running up the gutter in it._

Patting her shoulder to reassure her as yelling would serve no practical purpose, got out to survey the damage. It wasn't as bad as he first thought but it wasn't a small scratch either.

Amy barley moved as she replayed the scene over and over in her mind, the wide load, her panic, the crunch of the car as it impacted on the curb. Perhaps she didn't want her licence after all. Somebody came up to the car and talked to Murdock, even though she was in ear shot Amy could only hear the loud beating of her heart.

"I pulled up as soon as I could, rig like that it takes a bit longer. What's the damage?" A man dressed in navy overalls with a logo patch asked Murdock.

"Nothing major, reckon a new bumper and she'll be good as new" Except_ the owner of the vehicle is gonna kill me._

"Okay, is she okay? Need a tow truck?"

"She's a bit freaked, leaner driver and all. I've got a friend that's a towie, thanks but I think we're okay"

"Okay then" The man walked back up to the crane and drove away.

"How bad did I wreck the car?" Amy asked when Murdock came to sit in the passenger's seat.

"I'll be honest Amy, it ain't any old scratch. I think we should call B.A. out to get his opinion. It was an accident and I am sure Face will understand okay?"

"He's gonna hate me. You were right, it was a bad idea"

"Hey, he won't hate you because it isn't just you're fault, look, we're in this together okay and it was an accident"

Amy was determined not to cry, not matter how much she wanted to. She nodded. "Do you want me to call B.A.?"

"He might believe it if you do" Amy nodded again, that was true.

Amy picked up the car phone and dialled the number she knew too well, the van.

B.A. answered.

"Where are you guys? Face be up soon, better get that car back"

"About that um, B.A. we, I , um"

With Amy's broken speech Murdock took the phone.

"Big guy we had an accident. We're fine but the front of the vette. I know that, will you just? Damn it B.A. it was a crane okay. Please come out, Mangoola Road, about fifteen minutes north from the cemetery. Okay"

Murdock turned to Amy as he hung up.

"B.A.'s on his way"

She nodded and sighed; a tear fell down her right cheek. She swiped it away but he saw and turned her to face him. His eyes meeting hers, surprisingly he didn't seem angry like she had expected.

"Its all right, we're okay. No one got hurt. The car is patchable and Face will get over it"

"No he won't, he loves this car" Amy shook her head. _Why did I have to insist, we should have asked Face and I shouldn't have made him take me._

"Amy, I'm not saying he ain't gonna be nixed at us but he will calm down. Family have always meant more to him then materialistic things and we are his family. Anyways, I'd rather have him mad at me even for a little while than B.A." Murdock said.

"I guess so"

"Yeah, I think we can stand some music now" Murdock said as he put the keys back in and turned them once so the radio would work.

"Yeah" Amy half laughed "I guess distractions don't matter now"

"There is that but I thought it might calm us both a bit, I was as scared as you when we came face to face with that rig but I had the experience you didn't and that made all the difference to how I would have reacted. In time that will come for you"

'_Under Pressure'_ by David Bowie played softly through the speakers.

"I'm not so sure I want to drive, I mean there are taxi's, trains, busses-"

Murdock brought one of his hands gently to her mouth and she trailed off.

"The first time I drove back on the farm was in a rusty old thing that had no doors or glass. Anyway grandpa was beside me, I was about eight I guess. I was a lot more nervous than you were, and it was manual, so I stalled it many times. Long story short I screwed up and I hit a stump, tore the front end out but look at me now. Don't let one accident make up your mind. Driving it aint so easy but once you are competent it's an amazing thing to be able to do. Don't give up yet, okay?"

"I won't promise anything but I'll think about it, thanks Murdock"

"Sure thing, anytime"

They listened to the radio white noise as they waited for B.A.. Amy thought about what Murdock had said; perhaps throwing in the proverbial towel after once mistake was a bit dramatic. It had scared her but perhaps like him she should learn from this experience and let it be something that she grew rather than ran from.

Murdock was looking at the dying day as the night began to encroach, the sky turning a beautiful shade of orange.

**-A-TEAM-A-TEAM-**

B.A. arrived as the last of the day's light faded and the silver moon took pride of place as the stars twinkled above.

Amy had her head on the pilot's jacketed shoulder as he approached the car. She wasn't tired, if anything she was the complete opposite, as tends to happen when you have what could have been a life threatening experience.

"I'm sorry we had to get you out here B.A." Amy said as she moved off Murdock's shoulder.

"S'okay little sister. I'm glad you an the fool are okay"

"Thanks for the concern big buy, didn't know you cared"

"Shut-up fool. Grab a torch and show me what the damage is"

Amy sat quietly as B.A. and Murdock surveyed the damage she had caused to Face's baby, in typical fashion Murdock was getting in B.A's way as he _'just tried to help'_.

"Best course of action is we take the bumper off, put it in the van and you limp back to the house following me" B.A. said.

"Take it off? Oh man, is there a less destructive way?" Murdock asked not liking the idea of further trashing Face's car.

Amy stayed mum and let the guys talk it out, she'd done enough today.

"Let me put it another way sucker. We taking the bumper off and you gonna follow me, clear?"

"Crystal" Murdock replied as the big guy loomed over him.

Taking the bumper off the vette off was a straight forward job, Amy held the torch as B.A. and Murdock worked as a team with very little conversation save the odd 'watch in man!' from B.A.. Once it was stowed in the back of the van B.A. gave the rest of the motor a once over and seemed pleased, well with B.A. it's hard to tell but he seemed no more agitated than usual.

"Stay close fool!" B.A. said as he went to start the van.

Amy slid over and Murdock jumped into the driver's seat, readjusting it and the mirror to suite his lanky body. Then he gently reversed back before filing onto the road after the GMC van. He was relieved when they finally reached the driveway of the house, by which time Amy was coming down from her adrenaline rush and feeling very tired.

Hearing the vehicles approach, Hannibal who had been back from his gig for about half an hour and Face who had woken up and found the note just before B.A. left was also rushing outside.

The van first blocked Face's view of the damage but as he drew closer and past the van where B.A was getting out he saw it.

_What have they done to my baby? _He didn't say anything at first but his eyes directed on Murdock and Amy as they exited _his _car spoke volumes. His car that had been in one piece when he got home this morning, his car that no one had asked to borrow. His special toy and they had broken it, it was still running at least from the looks of how it had been driven up the drive way. That was something.

Hannibal with cigar between his teeth saw the fury rising in Face's halted form, he knew he had reason to be mad but he was only prepared to let Face vent so much of that anger in an aggressive way. When Face got mad, really mad, it was usually one thing that released an outlet of pent up anger and he could see that happening right now.

He put one hand on Face's shoulder and the younger man turned to him and said two words that weren't exactly what he expected.

"Accidents happen"

_If I keep saying that will I really believe it?_

Accompanied by what was supposed to be a con committal shrug, which was less than effective to someone that knew Face very well and had years of practice. A little bit of the fury dissipating from his blue eyes none the less.

_Well, it's a start_ Hannibal thought. _As long as Murdock doesn't make light of the situation we may be okay._

**-A-TEAM-A-TEAM- **

Murdock got out and walked around to open Amy's door, taking his offered hand she hopped out. Looking over her eyes met Face's but even with the little distance between them she guiltily looked away.

_I think Murdock was wrong, that look, he hates me. What have I done? Face didn't have much but he had his vette and I wrecked it. Well not totally wrecked but still…_

Murdock stood by her side as Face approached, eying the front of his car, he looked hurt and sad with a hint of noticeable anger.

"Uh Face, we, it was an accident" Murdock said as he handed Face his keys.

Face took a deep breath; he could do the right thing. Murdock was telling the truth, they hadn't set out for this to happen, it just did. One of those things. Could have happened to anyone and besides that…..

"The car is replaceable, you guys aren't" he said letting it out gently.

Amy looked up at that, surprised by his lack of blame and anger. _He's not mad? How can he not be mad? Look what I did._

Face patted Murdock on the shoulder before he turned to Amy, when he hugged her she hugged right back. When he tried to pull back she didn't want to let go and held tight. Embarrassingly aware she was crying softly into his polo shirt.

B.A. had gone into the house but Hannibal and Murdock watched as the two just stayed embraced, Face moving one hand up to run through Amy's hair. He was glad he had his back to them so he didn't have to make eye contact and he kissed the top of Amy's head.

"I wish you would have asked in person but uh, like I said I'm glad you're okay" his other hand rubbed her back. He whispered low so only she could hear his words.

"It must have really shaken you up. Those eyes should not be tear filled, it was an accident and I forgive you…Please don't cry"

Sensing a moment of sorts in the making Murdock more or less pulled along by Hannibal joined B.A. in the warmth of the house.

Amy pulled her head back a bit to look up at Face, wondering why he looked about to cry. Did he love his car that much?

"I'm sorry. Murdock didn't even want too, not really. I talked him into it, I'm so sorry Face" she looked back down but his hand that had been running through her hair gently eased it back so he could see her face as he spoke to her.

"I can replace the bumper or the car but I can't replace you, Murdock, B.A or Hannibal. I can't replace the only real family I've ever known"

"You don't hate me? I crashed your car" Her eyes begging him for forgiveness, like she had done something truly horrible.

"I know but it was an accident Amy and no I'm happy about it but, no, I definitely don't hate you. Why would you think that?" He asked as he shook his head, a little hurt about how negatively she prejudged his reaction.

"Because…when I was a little kid and my dad was still, I grew up in a house without love that was full of hate and a little neglect at times. I guess that a part of me still expects to be yelled at or hit or, it's stupid but a part of me didn't want you find out I-"

"I would never hurt you Amy but I do understand as my childhood was very much the same but without biological parents as you know. We got screwed up didn't we?" he sighed as he still held her.

"Yeah, but we made it, didn't we"

The way she asked it was more like a question than a statement, like she needed reassurance that she was nothing like her past that she had bettered herself and he knew this too well. Felt it tug at his heart strings, memories resurfacing. How many times had he had moments like this with Hannibal over the years? The man who had been the closest thing to a father he had ever known, saw him as the son he'd never had.

"Yes Amy, we did. Both of us. We beat the odds and broke the cycle" he kissed her forehead.

"Let's go inside, it's getting chilly out here" he pulled back and just left one arm around her waist and she put one of hers around him.

"Just a little. Thanks Face"

"For what?"

"Accepting my apology, letting me ruin your shirt as well"

"I never really liked this shirt anyway, just don't tell Hannibal that, it was a gift"

"I won't" Amy replied as they opened the front door and felt the warmth of the fire that had filled the house.

**-A-TEAM-A-TEAM-**

_-Fini-_


End file.
